When sitting for long periods of time, people must occasionally shift their weight to allow blood flow in compressed posterior tissues. Without adequate blood flow, skin problems and pressure sores can develop that lead to serious health complications. Because of their limited mobility, wheelchair users are at a greater risk to develop such sores.
One such problem, pressure ulcers, are a major public health concern that can lead to painful, life-threatening, and expensive medical complications. If severe, pressure ulcers may result in a person becoming bed-ridden. For wheelchair users, pressure ulcers can be directly attributable to the failure of a user to perform regular weight shift exercises. Weight shift exercises enable unrestricted capillary blood flow in compressed posterior tissues, and are often effective at preventing pressure ulcers and other skin problems resulting from inactivity. Unfortunately, a wheelchair user often does not realize if he or she has been stationary for extended periods of time, which may lead to sores and skin problems.
What is needed are systems and methods to enable the activity monitoring of a person seated for extended periods of time, such as wheelchair users. It would also be advantageous if such systems and methods permitted not only the wheelchair user to monitor his or her activity, but also other persons, such as physical therapists, to remotely monitor the wheelchair user's activity.